Voice Your Choice: Kanye West1/9

Voice Your Choice: Kanye West

Voice Your Choice: Kanye West
Shane Larratt: Language and Contemporary Song Lyrics, 10-12th grades
Vincent Massey Collegiate in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
My course is called Language and Contemporary Song Lyrics and it features a mix of students that are from Grades 10-12. This English Language Arts option course was a natural fit for the Voice your Choice project as it dealt with many of the same concerns that the course is focused upon already. My students first determined that they would select artists that would fulfill the current objectives set out by the RRHOF for induction but with a twist; the selections would occur 25 years in the future so that all artists could be considered for induction. Students presented their inductees in a variety of formats, ranging from traditional persuasive essays to Power Point presentations featuring a wide array of visual and multimedia supplements. The big challenges faced by students were in determining their artist of focus and if selecting a current artist, making sure that they had enough evidence to fully support their validity. Students worked through their challenges by reviewing the RRHOF parameters for induction and also reviewing artists that have already been enshrined; what did they have that suggested excellence and aesthetic value. Additionally, the resources supplied by the RRHOF education department for the Voice your Choice project served as an excellent guide and starting point. Many times, students would go to the Voice your Choice website to regain focus or simply reframe what it was that they were working on or think further about what directions to take. Students gained an authentic appreciation for the difficult task of induction at the RRHOF as well as a deeper insight towards topics already being discussed in the course, such as what constitutes musical excellence, and how one measures aesthetics. The completion of this project will benefit further areas of focus within the course this semester and will undoubtedly be used again in the future.